n. an organized series of acts and performances (usually in one place)

n. a day or period of time set aside for feasting and celebration

Etymologies

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 4th Edition

From Middle English, festive, from Old French, from Medieval Latin fēstivālis, from Latin fēstīvus, from fēstus.

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License

From Late Latin fēstīvālis, from Latin fēstīvus ("festive").

Examples

If we assign three weeks to each festival -- including the time spent on the journeys, and the delays before and after the celebration, together with the _festival week_, it will be a small allowance for the cessation of their regular labor.

If we assign three weeks to each festival -- including the time spent on the journey going and returning, and the delays before and after the celebration, together with the _festival week_; it will be a small allowance for the cessation of their regular labor.

Despite the obvious question marks, I think the festival is actually not a bad idea, though making the city the center of the universe for all things Wagner for a few weeks may still be a bit of a stretch.